Money Is Nice, But Managers

On the Job

Think Workers Prefer Praise

It's praise and recognition that brings joy, according to a survey of 150 human resource executives at the nation's 1,000 largest companies. Forty-seven percent said a little bit of TLC is the way to keep employees satisfied.

In the poll sponsored by OfficeTeam, a national staffing firm based in Menlo Park, Calif., another 26 percent said promotions bring happiness; 9 percent, job security; 9 percent, work environment; 7 percent, compensation and benefits; and 2 percent, other factors.

Andrew Denka, executive director of OfficeTeam, observes that "recognizing and rewarding employees' efforts will lead to high morale and increased productivity."

I accept the fact that managers seriously believe money isn't the No. 1 source of an employee's happiness, but I wonder what the results would have been if employees rather than executives had been polled.

JOB CANDIDATE DISSATISFACTION: A reader asks: "Should job applicants be notified by potential employers of receipt of materials, when they are eliminated from consideration or when the position is filled?'' The reader then observes: "Most employers do not respond to anything. I believe I deserve the courtesy of notification."

I believe you do, too, but whoever said the world is fair? All job seekers, in fact, deserve to know their status, but in a tight labor market where good jobs are scarce, employers rarely let you know what's happening - until or unless they want to hire you.

I chastise employers and human resource personnel about this cruelty to job applicants, and their response is they have been forced by economics to reduce their human resource staffs. They say they have such a glut of applicants that they can't possibly respond to every individual.

RESPONSIBLE EMPLOYERS: As part of its outplacement services to laid-off employees, Baxter International offers a transition workshop to help train employees who are leaving and thinking about starting their own businesses.

The program was developed by the Entrepreneurial Institute of America in conjunction with Dr. Michael Hudson, director of Cornell University's entrepreneurship and personal enterprise program.

The program consists of classroom lectures and individual field market and demographic research. Participants, whose fees are paid by Baxter, devise a solid business plan for their forthcoming enterprise.

"The workshop empowers people with confidence and know-how that are vital to take an idea to market," said Maureen Gold, manager of Baxter's career center.

There already are some success stories: Former Baxter employees Sandra Johnson and Tom LaDore went through the program. Today, Johnson is a self-employed quality systems auditor and LaDore owns a food and drinking establishment.

FEELING DISCOURAGED: Don't feel depressed if things aren't going well in your present job, for this, too, shall pass: U.S. workers will change professions three times over their work lives and will change their jobs six times, reports the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

CREATIVE RIPOFF: Over the years, I've received numerous complaints from people seeking jobs in advertising. They say that when they apply for copywriting jobs, they're asked to produce a sample project for the company.

The sample usually is for an existing product, and the applicant's job is to turn out usable copy, art work or marketing plan. "The message is clear," a reader writes. "No sample, no consideration."

The copywriter says the employer gets the ad material free - and then frequently uses the work, whether or not the applicant gets the job. The scam, as the copywriter describes it, is that the prospective employer gets quality work for nothing.

This isn't a unique scam, unfortunately. It goes on at many organizations. But what is unique is that this reader fought back and sent a bill to the prospective employer.